Watch Dog
by Xernes
Summary: Alcide comes back to Sookie's house after Debbie's been there with a special request. Set after episode 3x08, rated M for later chapters. R&R!
1. Chapter 1

**Pairing: **Sookie/Alcide

**Disclaimer: **Sookie and Alcide belong to Charlaine Harris, the storyline/universe that I am following belongs to Alan Ball.

**A/N: **For those of you who might be reading my other chapter fic "Made," I am not taking a break from it. I am doing a rather ballsy thing (in my opinion!) by writing both at the same time. I just really, really, _really _like Alcide...I had to. Enjoy!~

**Chapter One**

In the middle of the summer, nothing sounded better to Sookie Stackhouse than a lukewarm bath on her day off, and just soak for hours at a time. Today was turning out to be one of those kinds of days. She was going through a breakup with her first love, that bitch Debbie Pelt attacked her a couple of days ago, and Sookie didn't know which way was up anymore. Her whole life seemed as if it were a tornado, whipping around the walls of her heart, destroying all in its path and devouring all her energy. She wanted to go back to when her life wasn't too complicated; when she could predict her days, and people she knew weren't dying left and right. How easy it had been before Bill Compton had come into her life—well, her life was as easy as it could have been then with her telepathy and all.

Sookie turned the knobs on her tub, filling it with more cold water than hot so that the cool mixture would be the remedy she needed to relax her tense muscles and forget the whole world. While the tub was filling, Sookie disrobed in front of her mirror with a sad sort of face. Her skin was littered with healing bruises, thanks to all the vampire blood she had from when she was still in the hospital. The aching marks were a fading purplish color with a faint yellow rim. Sookie supposed they didn't look so bad, but when she pressed the bruises, she'd hiss from the pain. She could just hear her Gran now: "Quit doing it if it hurts!" How she missed her Gran; she'd know exactly what to say to get Sookie through the personal turmoil of a broken heart.

Once she worked off her cotton panties, Sookie fiddled with the knobs on the tub to turn off the water. Just as she was about to step inside, she got the idea of how nice it would have been if she poured out some bubble bath when the tub was filling. It was too late for that now, so Sookie grabbed a couple of oil bath beads and popped them in around the tub. She loved those things; they left her skin feeling real slick, but smelling great.

Grabbing the romance novel she was currently reading, Sookie got into the tub feet first, allowing her body to slide into the water. Being in the tub reminded her of going swimming on a hot summer day, how the warm air would heat up the water so that she wouldn't have to ease herself into the pool inch by inch as she got used to the water. It was heaven to her, and exactly what she needed.

Sookie opened her book to the page where she had left off and unfolded the corner that she had used as a makeshift bookmark. The premise of the story was quite a cliché one, the kind where the guy finally woke up and realized that he loved his best friend after all these years, but she was currently with another man. Normally, curling up with her favorite romance novel didn't bother her when her and Bill had been fighting, but something about not having him anymore, the huge hole he had left in her heart, and the fact that she had no one to tell that she loved them (well, other than Jason and Tara whenever they weren't bothering her too much) kept her from being able to enjoy the words on the page.

It only took a couple of paragraphs till Sookie's eyes welled with tears. They rolled down her tanned cheeks endlessly, running down her neck and pooling around her collarbone. Why didn't anyone tell her that breaking up was this bad, that it sucked this much? Had she known the pain, she might not have gotten with Bill in the first place...

But then she would have missed out on so much, and those experiences were almost worth all the pain she had to deal with now.

As Sookie brought her wet hand up to wipe at her eyes, there was a knock at the door. She was hopeful, for one shining moment that it was Bill, but that was a foolish wish since it was light outside and he no longer had any ties to her. Sookie really considered ignoring the door, she even dunked her head under the water, allowing her hair to get soaked, but as soon as her head popped back up again, the knocking evolved into a persistent banging.

"For goodness sake, I'm coming! Hold your horses!" Sookie called out to whatever visitor she had. Reluctantly, she pulled her dripping body out of the tub. She grabbed a striped towel that she had laid out and quickly dried off her body as best as she could before she pulled a fluffy pink bathrobe tight around her body and tied the belt around her waist.

She padded to the door, leaving wet footprints behind her. Sookie didn't bother looking out the window to see who it was; it was probably the dang mailman with a package, telling her that she had to sign off for it. She opened the door, and without looking at her visitor, she asked, "What do you need?"

"Good morning, Sookie," a familiar voice said in a low drawl.

Her eyes immediately shot up at the tall man standing in front of her. "Alcide, what the hell are you doing here?" Sookie asked, certain that her jaw was scrapping the floor by now. It wasn't like she hadn't seen Alcide for years or anything, she only just met him a couple weeks ago, but he had just _left _to take care of his family after that Pelt bitch burned down his sister's salon. Only one thought came to her mind, "Oh my gosh, was Janice inside?"

Alcide looked sincerely confused. "What? Oh, that, no...she wasn't inside, no one was," he said simply. He glanced more closely at Sookie, noticing that she was only clad in a bathrobe. Alcide stuffed his fists into his pockets awkwardly. "How about you invite me in so you don't have to stand out in your robe?"

"What? Oh, sure! Come on in!" Sookie said excitedly, yet still shocked to see Alcide standing in front of her. She stood to the side and held the door open for the extremely tall werewolf to walk through. "Do you want anything; coffee, orange juice?" Sookie couldn't help but offer—it was the polite thing to do—even though she was certain that Alcide didn't come all the way to Bon Temps to have a cup of her coffee or a glass of her juice.

"Coffee, please," Alcide said, following Sookie into her kitchen and taking a seat at her table. His large body looked odd perched on her chairs—which weren't tiny, by the way—but Alcide made it look like he was being forced to attend a tea party by an insistent and determined five-year-old.

"How do you take it?" Sookie asked as she poured out two mugs worth of coffee; one for her, one for him. Maybe after she had a jolt of caffeine, she'd start to feel like her normal self again.

"Cream and sugar," Alcide told her, settling into the chair as it gave an audible creak.

Sookie quickly added the finishing touches to the coffee and brought them over to the table, passing one mug over to Alcide as she slithered delicately into her own chair. She brought the warm fluid up to her nose and inhaled its scent, but didn't sip. It was still too dang hot to drink when it was equally hot outside. "So, what brings you to Bon Temps?"

Alcide took a drink from the mug before he spoke. "You do, actually."

Her eyes grew wide and worried. "What?"

"Come live with me," Alcide blurted out as if the request wasn't a huge, life-altering one.

Sookie's brows furrowed. Normally, she would have thought Alcide was just messing with her, but from the expression on his face, she knew that his offer was as serious as cancer. "No, Alcide, I can't just come live with you. Why do you even ask?"

"Some werewolves were here, including Debbie," Alcide said plainly, bringing the mug up to his lips again to take another sip.

She hesitated before she said, "I picked up their scent on your porch, your doorstep...the stench is really strong in your living room. I'm guessing there was blood there?" Alcide asked, but he didn't wait for an answer. Instead, he pressed on, "I also heard from some other Weres in Jackson about how Debbie left the state with two members from her pack of addicts. There's only one reason why she'd leave out of nowhere—you."

"Why?" Of course, Sookie knew that Debbie was a bitch—_the _bitch in her eyes—but she didn't know Debbie, and Debbie didn't know her. No one had ever hated her quite this much without reason.

"I killed her lover, so she wants to kill mine," Alcide said simply.

"We're not lovers!" Sookie said, nearly yelling. This hardly seemed fair. She already _told _Debbie that she wasn't sleeping with Alcide. Did she not get it the first time?

"I know that, but she either doesn't believe it or she doesn't care," he told her.

Sookie was banking on the latter. "Let her come back. I'll be ready," she said proudly, finally bringing her coffee up to her chapped lips to take a small sip. "I'm sorry, but I can't come with you to Jackson. I got a job, and like I told you, I'm not going to spend my life running, Alcide."

Alcide nodded his head slowly, and brought his hands together in front of him as if he were in deep thought. "Then, I'll stay here."

"What? You can't just invite yourself to stay at my house, Alcide!" Sookie snapped, trying not to get angry with him. He had protected her when she needed it most, and allowed her to stay with him in Jackson. Had it not been for Alcide, she probably wouldn't have saved Bill. Well, maybe that wouldn't have been such a bad thing, looking back now. If she hadn't saved Bill, she wouldn't have almost died.

Alcide had a half-smile on his lips. "I'm not, remember? You offered to me a couple days ago that I could stay here as long as I like."

Sookie's mouth was open wide again. "Yeah, but that time was different, and you only wanted to stay a day!"

"I would have gladly stayed longer had I not had a family emergency," Alcide reminded Sookie with a hard pointed look. "I wouldn't be doing this if I didn't think it might mean life or death, Sookie. You got lucky having a couple of fa—vampires around last time. What if Bill isn't able rescue you if they come back?"

She had told Alcide before he left that Bill would come for her when she was in trouble, but she couldn't be sure. What if he got kidnapped again? What if Debbie came back during the daytime? What if Bill decided that she wasn't worth all the work keeping alive anymore? It'd be smart to have a backup plan—a watch dog around to protect her if things started to get bad. She'd be foolish if she thought otherwise. "What about your family, Alcide? Aren't you supposed to be protecting _them_?"

Naturally, he already had an answer for this. "My father is more than enough protection for my family."

"What about your contracting job?" Sookie asked.

"Already taken care of—I took a couple weeks off of vacation."

Sookie sighed. He had covered all the bases, and he covered them well. "Fine, you can stay. But we're not sleeping together, okay? You can have the guest bedroom."

Alcide flashed her an innocent sort of smile as if the thought had never crossed his mind, but Sookie knew better. He watched Sookie pick up their mugs and take them to the sink before he asked, "What were you doing before I arrived?" He stole another playful glance at her pink robe.

She glanced up from the sink and turned to look over her shoulder into Alcide's beautiful eyes. "I was bathing."

His smile grew wider only slightly. "Sorry about that," he told her as he stood up from the table. "I'm going to go bring in my bags if that's okay with you."

Sookie almost laughed. He had his bags packed, took weeks off from work, and made sure his family was properly protected by his father. It's like he knew she'd agree to his offer way before she did said yes. Sookie turned back to the mugs, hiding her smile as she started to scrub them clean. "Fine by me."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

With Alcide around, it was almost impossible for her to be mopey, but somehow Sookie managed it. A couple times that afternoon, she burst into tears without any warning, and hide her face in the throw pillows on her couch. Alcide knew to keep his distance; somewhere around three in the afternoon he escaped up to the guest bedroom. For almost twenty minutes, Sookie just listened to Alcide walking around upstairs. His footsteps sounded like pacing, as if he was moving back and forth from one side of the room to the other—probably putting away his clothes and making himself feel at home.

Sookie figured that she should offer her assistance; after all, she needed to do _something _to get Bill out of her mind. With great effort, Sookie pushed herself from the couch and padded up the stairs as she wiped away the sheen of tears from her rosy cheeks. Alcide didn't close the door to the guest bedroom, but she knocked lightly on it anyway so she wouldn't scare him. "Need some help?" Sookie asked, hating the way her voice sounded.

"No, but I'd love some company if you're up for it," Alcide said with a small, knowing smile. He had been there, of course. He knew what she was going through—in fact, he probably understood heartbreak better than Sookie had. He was engaged to Debbie when she had fucked some other guy, and that couldn't have been a walk in the park for him. "Just promise me one thing?"

"What's that?" Sookie said through a tiny hiccup as she perched herself in the middle of the bed, crossing her legs in front of her as she leaned against the bed frame.

Alcide turned to grab a plaid button-up shirt (he had to have a million of those darn things) and worked it onto the white plastic hanger in his hand. "No more tears," he said with a grin before he stowed his shirt away in the cramped closet.

"You're really going to have to distract me if you want that," Sookie said with the faintest smile on her lips.

"Well, I know a couple different ways I can distract you," Alcide said happily.

"I already told you I am not going to sleep with you, or do any other sexual stuff." Sookie folded her arms over her chest stubbornly and gave Alcide a curt nod, but she couldn't stifle her chuckles.

"Fine," Alcide said, fishing out another plaid shirt from his duffel bag. "Why don't you tell me about your family?"

Sookie almost pipped back, asking about what family, but she did have her brother. "Well, you've met Jason, so you know what he's like. My parents died when I was young, and my Gran was murdered not too long ago. I suppose that's...well, I also have a cousin named Hadley. She came by out of the blue a bit before Debbie showed up. I hadn't seen her in God knows how long before that." She really hoped that Alcide wouldn't pity her; he must have a rather close-knit family. Sookie never really had that opportunity after her folks died in that flood, but she was used to it by now.

"Really? What did she want?" Alcide asked, stowing away a pair of worn and faded blue jeans.

She hesitated; the message that Hadley gave was a strange one, mainly because it was from Eric Northman. Sookie was still curious as to how she knew him, but still had no answer. "Just that everyone and their brother are coming after me now, it seems," Sookie said, conveniently leaving out the don't-trust-Bill part.

"Well, it's a good thing I'm here," Alcide said in a matter-of-fact tone, pulling out a pair of dark gray boxer briefs.

Sookie flushed a light rosy color at the sight of them. "Hey, those aren't plaid!"

Alcide held the pair in his hand with his eyebrows cocked. "That's right...they aren't." He looked so confused that it was almost cute. "Are they supposed to be?"

"Well, practically everything you wear is plaid!" Sookie protested, propping herself up on her knees.

"I've been told that it suits me," Alcide huffed, tossing his boxer briefs in the opened drawer.

Sookie tilted her head to the side like a curious pup. After she stared at Alcide for a moment or two, she finally announced, "It does."

Alcide released a small chuckle before grabbing his duffel bag, folding it up, and placing it inside the closet. "All done."

"That's all you brought with you?" Sookie asked incredulously.

"Yep, I figured I shouldn't be too cocky and pack for a couple of weeks," Alcide said, sliding his index fingers through his unused belt loops. "I'll eventually have to go into town and get some more clothes, I think."

Sookie wondered if he actually under-packed because he was hopeful that she'd say yes about joining him back in Jackson, but she didn't look into Alcide's brain for the answer. "Can I come with you, if you go on a day I have off, that is?"

"Sure you can," Alcide said, looking as if he wanted to go right now, but it was nearing dinnertime. "You can let me know what looks good."

She thought that just about anything would look good on Alcide. Even though she was dealing with her broken heart, she had to admit that he was easy on the eyes, and he also felt good beneath her palms...Sookie had to stop herself; she was emerging into dangerous territory. She didn't want to say anything brutally open and honest like she did last time Alcide was with her—when she told him that if she knew what was good for her, then she would have fallen in love with a guy like him. "We'll probably have to go into Shreveport."

"Fine with me as long as we don't have to go see Eric." Alcide didn't care too much for vampires.

"We can go during the day," Sookie suggested as she started to maneuver herself out of the soft guest bed. She faltered a bit on her way off the mattress, and Alcide held out a hand for her. Sookie grabbed it, and he easily helped her out of the bed—a little too easily; Sookie stumbled over her feet and fell into his arms, the side of her face was pressed against his warm chest. "Oops, my bad," Sookie said, immediately drawing herself from Alcide's body with sanguine cheeks.

Alcide slowly inhaled her scent. She smelled like springtime to him; fresh and clean, sweet and airy. "You smell nice."

Sookie's cheeks flushed a deeper shade of rosy red. "Must be because of those bath beads."

"Must be," Alcide repeated, his voice low.

She stared into his beautiful brown eyes for several moments before Sookie came to her senses and announced, "I should start making dinner."

"Want some help?" Alcide asked, following Sookie out of the guest bedroom and down the stairs.

"Uh, no, you cooked a steak for breakfast in a wok when I was in Jackson, remember? I think we ought to leave the cooking to me," Sookie responded playfully, leading Alcide into her much loved kitchen. The sun was still shining into the kitchen, lighting up the room with fading sunshine. It would probably be dark in a little under two hours, and Sookie sure as hell hoped that Bill and any other vampire wouldn't decide to show up on her doorstep, asking to come inside. "What do you feel like? I have hamburgers or bratwursts ready to be made."

Alcide looked thoughtful. "Do you have beer?"

What a strange question. "Um, no?" Sookie wasn't much of a drinker. She only kept beer in the house for Jason and he recently polished off the last of it.

"Then hamburgers," Alcide said with a grin. He liked bratwursts a lot, but only when they were cooked in beer for flavoring.

Sookie preferred hamburgers today anyway, so she set to work. She liked her meat cooked to medium, but figured that Alcide probably liked his meat a bit more red and juicy. So, she made a variety of different patties, some for her and some for him. Sookie paired the hamburgers with potato wedges and different fresh vegetables to garnish the burgers. As she was chopping up a head of lettuce, she felt hot breath on the back of her neck and heard Alcide inhale her scent nice and slow.

"A-Alcide?" Sookie asked. Her hands were still and she held her breath when one of his large hands rested on her hip. "What are you doing?"

"You're adorable when you're cooking," Alcide said, nuzzling his nose against the nape of her neck. "You made the funniest noises when you touched the raw meat, and your nose scrunched up when you plopped it into the pan. You hummed to yourself when you were slicing the tomatoes." He placed his hand over hers, the one that was holding the cutting knife, and grabbed an onion with the other. "Let me help you chop this up."

Her breath was shaky when she inhaled. "Alcide, you're just doing this because you're lonely," Sookie said in a low voice.

He stilled behind her. "I am doing this because I want to and because I like you, not because I miss the touch of a woman," he explained, breathing in her sweet scent again before he lightly ran his lips across the back of her neck, not quite in a kiss, but more so to test how her flesh felt beneath his warm mouth. "Close your eyes so the onion doesn't bother you. I'll cut it up."

Sookie sighed, but shut her eyes. She felt Alcide tighten his hand around her hand that was holding the knife, but not painfully so, and he guided it to where his opposite hand held the onion in place. In one swift swipe of the blade, he cut the already peeled onion in half. As he chopped the onion up in thin slices, Sookie's head fell back, resting against his shoulder as she nestled her nose into the crook of his neck.

When the onion was finally burger-ready, Alcide pulled the knife from Sookie's hand and turned his head to capture her lips. Sookie gasped and stilled again, but quickly started to kiss Alcide back. His lips were so soft and warm, and his facial hair tickled her face. Sookie reached her hand up to cup the back of Alcide's neck, trying to pull him closer into her. Her mouth opened easily, and she felt Alcide's tongue dive inside her wet warmth, exploring her mouth in smart strokes. His kiss was a lot different than Bill's; she could hear his heartbeat, he felt alive and healthy and hot. Sookie wanted to stay here in her kitchen kissing Alcide for hours, but when she felt an obvious strain in Alcide's pants start to develop against her body, she pulled back.

"We should stop," Sookie panted, opening her chocolate brown eyes slowly to meet Alcide's.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that," Alcide said weakly as he stepped back from behind Sookie and held his hands over his front to conceal the slight bulge in his pants till it subsided.

Sookie's cheeks blushed a fierce pink. "No, it's fine. I wanted you to." Awkwardly, she brought her hand up to pat his shoulder and set back to cooking. "Dinner will be ready in a minute or two. I just have to get everything together."

She spread out the lettuce, tomato slices, onion, and pickles on a little plate. Sookie also melted some cheddar cheese on the patties and browned the buns in the oven for a couple of minutes. She got out the ketchup, mustard, and mayonnaise since she wasn't sure which condiment Alcide favored. "Ready!" Sookie announced happily as she pulled out two plates and passed one to Alcide.

"It looks and smells really good, Sookie, thanks," Alcide said before piling his plate high with food and digging in.

When they finished eating dinner, Alcide said something that Sookie definitely was not expecting. "I think we should be together."

"What?"

"We'd be good together." His thoughts were completely genuine.

Sookie looked shocked, and she certainly felt that way, too. "But you're still not over Debbie." That was the only protest she could think of.

"I am, though," Alcide argued, reaching across the table to place his hand on Sookie's. "She's dead to me after she attacked you that way."

He was genuine about that, too, or at least genuine enough. Even though he meant what he said, Sookie was still hurting. Bill broke her heart with the things he had said on the phone, and she wasn't sure if she could easily trust another man after all that. She also didn't know how Alcide would deal with her telepathy on an everyday basis. It didn't seem to be a huge issue when she was in Mississippi, but they were apart a lot of the time, or focused on other things besides each other.

But a huge part of her was attracted to Alcide in countless ways, and she assumed that it was that part that allowed her to say, "I'll consider it, alright?"

Alcide's mouth erupted in a wide smile, and his thumb stroked her soft hand slowly. "Alright."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

"I wish we didn't have to sleep in separate beds," Alcide announced with one foot on the stairs, going up. He gently cupped Sookie's cheek with his large hand and leaned in to plant a kiss on her forehead.

Sookie could not agree more with Alcide's statement, but she knew if she slept with Alcide now, he'd be nothing more than a rebound and Alcide deserved better than that. "Maybe one day we won't have to," she said, kissing him back on his scruffy cheek.

Alcide smiled, but finally went up another step. "I can only hope. Goodnight."

"Sleep well, Alcide," she said with a smile. Sookie watched as Alcide climbed up the stairs and walked to the guest bedroom. Almost instantly, Sookie missed his presence.

Sookie padded into her room and shut the door behind her. She quickly discarded her clothes, tossed them into the hamper, and pulled on a nightgown over her head. When she lay in her bed and closed her eyes, she didn't feel at all tired. Her mind was too busy thinking about Alcide. Having only been with Bill, it was easy for her to be automatically turned on when Alcide was close to her, when his lips were pressed against hers. He was so warm, and it was so refreshing. He was so large; his body easily making her feel small, yet safe and protected. His voice so deep; husky and manly and his breath on her skin made her tingle all over.

One thing was certain: he made her feel like she was a teenage girl again with a silly, yet incontrovertible crush. He actually gave her butterflies in her stomach; something that Bill never quite achieved for one reason or another.

Almost as if it was instinct, Sookie slid her hand down her flat stomach, grabbed the hem of her nightgown, and lifted it up. She decided not to wear panties to bed since it was so warm outside. She pressed her palm against her heated flesh and plunged a finger into her moist channel, sliding in and out, imaging that it was Alcide who was deep inside of her, filling her up. Sookie pushed her thighs together around her finger as she brought down her other hand to find her small bundle of nerves. As her finger thrust deep inside of her, curling up to find that _spot_ over and over again as her hips elevated off the bed, Sookie's other hand swirled at her hardened nub in fast circles.

Her whole body, save for her hands, stilled as she felt her orgasm flow down from her spine to her core, and she came with a muffled cry. She fell back onto her bed, wiping her hands off on her sheets, as her body shook slightly.

Sookie's was completely sated from ecstasy, and she never _heard _Alcide's mind, even though he was lingering right outside her door with a sizable bulge in his Wrangler jeans.

* * *

The next morning, Sookie woke up a bit later than usual. She shuffled sleepily into the bathroom, did her business, brushed her teeth, and hopped in the shower. The warm water felt wonderful on her body, as did the body wash that she lathered her flesh up with.

Once she was done in the shower, Sookie wrapped a cream colored towel around her body as she blow dried her hair, styling her blond locks into loose curls and pulling it back into a nice ponytail. Sookie put on some light makeup, and dressed in her Merlotte's uniform.

Alcide was in the kitchen, clad in only tight jean pants with a mug of coffee in his hand. "Morning, Sookie. Are you working today?"

Sookie glanced down at her uniform and nodded. "Yeah, I am working till the evening," she told him as she made herself a cup of coffee that would hopefully jolt her for work. "I probably won't be back in time for dinner, but I can bring something back from Merlotte's."

"How about you let me make dinner?" Alcide asked, placing a light kiss on her cheek. An act like that in her kitchen with the morning sunshine flooding in through the windows almost made it seem like they were an actual couple. "I can go to the store to pick up some beer and make the brats."

"You sure that's a good idea?" Sookie playfully asked before she took a long sip from her delicious coffee. She was already starting to feel more awake.

Alcide almost looked hurt, but it was all just for show. "You underestimate me. I'm really not that bad of a cook."

"Fine then," Sookie said with a smile. "Dinner is in your hands." She finished off the rest of the coffee in her mug, placed it in the sink, and glanced down at her watch. "I have to go or I'll be late!"

Sookie made a beeline to the door, but Alcide stood in her way. "Aren't you going to say goodbye?" he asked her.

"Uh, goodbye?" Sookie said, confused.

"That's not the kind of goodbye I was looking for," Alcide told her before pressing his lips against hers in a light kiss. Sookie kissed him back, her mouth tasting of coffee, but Alcide pulled back before they could get carried away. "Have a nice time at work."

"Well, shoot," Sookie breathed, resting her face against his warm chest. "That wasn't fair; now I don't want to leave."

"Then don't," Alcide said, pulling her closer as his large hands traveled down her spine to the small of her back. "Stay here with me."

"I wish I could," Sookie said into his heated flesh, allowing her lips to linger over his chest in just the slightest hint of a kiss. "I can't wait to try your bratwursts."

Sookie ran out of her house to her car and drove off to Merlotte's for a shift that she was now not looking forward to, which was saying a lot. She loved her job, but she wanted to be back in Alcide's arms. Things with him were different than with Bill; she could go to bed and wake up with him without fear that he'd burn, she could enjoy a delicious meal with him, he could be her personal space heater in the winter, even. Sure, she could hear Alcide's thoughts, but they weren't as clear as the thoughts of humans, so they were definitely manageable.

The more Sookie thought about it, the more she was sold on the idea of starting a relationship with Alcide Herveaux.

While at work, Alcide was all she thought about. She ran over the positives and the negatives of being his girlfriend. Sookie wondered if Debbie would try and kill her again if she found out that her and Alcide were dating, if they even got to that point. She wondered how good Alcide was in bed and what he would feel like inside of her. Bill felt cool, but Alcide would be warm, and that would surely turn her on even more.

After all, at the end of the day Sookie _did _enjoy the heat more than the cold.

Perhaps her and Alcide were meant to be?

Sookie's shift went by a lot faster than she was anticipating it would, and it wasn't long till she was in her car again, driving back to her home. She pulled around back to park her car and quickly scampered into the house. As soon as she was inside, she breathed in the lovely smell of cooking food and her mouth watered.

Alcide was waiting for her in the kitchen with the table set and food already out on her plate. As soon as he looked up and saw Sookie, he crossed the room and hugged her tight. "I missed you all day."

She smiled into his chest. "I missed you, too." Reluctantly, she let go of Alcide and sat down at the table. "It smells so delicious."

"Hopefully it tastes even better," Alcide said proudly as he joined her. As he started to cut up his bratwursts, he asked, "How was work?"

"Not bad. I thought of you a lot," Sookie admitted before she popped a bite size hunk of bratwurst into her mouth and released a satisfied moan of approval.

Alcide grinned when he saw how much Sookie enjoyed his cooking. Like he said, he wasn't bad, he just had strange cooking methods sometimes. But then again, every bachelor did. "I hope they were all good thoughts."

"They were very good, even better than your brats," Sookie informed him before she took another bite.

There were no leftovers; the two of them ate up every bit of food that Alcide cooked before retiring in front of the television in Sookie's living room. Alcide was seated at the end of the couch, and Sookie was laying down with her head resting in his lap. His large hand absentmindedly stroked her hair, sending chills up her back every now and then.

When neither of them were really paying attention to what was on the television, Alcide said, "See, we can be good together."

Sookie shifted a bit so that she could look up into Alcide's eyes. "I know we can. I feel really comfortable and safe with you, Alcide," she told him, knowing that she was paying him a huge compliment since it was always a priority of his to protect her.

"Then why bother waiting?" Alcide asked as his hand traveled down to trace the curve of her neck. "I know how to love a woman the right way, and I can give you a good life."

Despite the fact that she loved being with him, they were still headed for dangerous waters at this rate. "I know, Alcide, but I am still reeling from Bill and everything that happened." She had to force back tears when she thought of how Bill had bit her and almost killed her before he even realized who he was doing all that to. In a tiny voice, Sookie added, "My heart is still hurting, and it's not fair to you to invite you in when I am trying to get over Bill."

"If you give me the chance," Alcide started, his hand running down to her shoulder and giving it a gentle, affectionate squeeze. "I can help forget all about that vampire."

Sookie wiggled free from Alcide's body and shot up from the couch. "Alcide, I do not want to start anything yet! I think that I really do like you, but that will quickly change if you keep pushing me." She didn't mean to yell at him, but she was, and the look on his face only made her feel worse. Sookie stomped off to her room like a stubborn, difficult child, but not before saying, "Bill might have been able to erase me from his life as if our relationship never really meant anything to him, but it meant something to _me _and I can't get rid of my feelings that easily."

She slammed the door behind her and hoped to God that Alcide would not knock on it, trying to apologize.

He didn't, and after about thirty minutes, she heard Alcide's heavy footsteps walk up the stairs.

Sookie felt awful, but she really could not think of any other way to respond. She wanted to be with Alcide, and definitely wouldn't mind being his girlfriend, but she also did not want to get with one man when she was still trying to get over another. But what if Sookie was more over Bill than she thought? After all, she was no longer sobbing at the mere thought of him, and she was pretty good at keeping her mind on other things. Their love also seemed to have died in the trunk of Alcide's car when Bill almost took her life from her, or maybe it died when he called her to tell her how he had just fucked Lorena. There wasn't anything left for her and Bill to mend, and there really was no use dragging it out.

Maybe she just needed another man to love? Maybe she just wanted to be with Alcide more than just about anything else at this point? Maybe she didn't care if she was being stupid because Alcide actually made her feel like she mattered to him, and that was enough for her to take the risk of falling in love again?

Maybe it was time to stop thinking and just start acting. Sookie liked that idea best.

She quickly got out of her room and took the stairs two at a time. Sookie stood outside of Alcide's room, catching her breath and hoping that he wasn't asleep yet. Once her breathing was back to normal, Sookie knocked on the door. "Alcide, are you awake? If you are, can we talk?"

After a long pause, Alcide said, "Sure, come in."

Sookie opened the door and closed it behind her before she looked up at Alcide. He was topless again, but had on flannel pajama pants that loosely hung around his hips instead of his tight jeans. He was propped up on and elbow with book that he was reading in front of him. "Sorry I interrupted," Sookie said, blushing.

"No, it's fine. It's a boring book, anyway," Alcide said, tossing it aside. "What do you want to talk about?"

"I just wanted to apologize," Sookie started, sitting on the edge of the bed. "I didn't mean to blow up like that. My mind has been so jumbled lately."

Alcide smiled, but it was a small, tense one. "I shouldn't have pushed you. I7 should let you be."

"I don't want you to let me be, though," Sookie said in a small voice. "You're good for me, and I decided that I don't want to wait anymore. I don't want you might meet someone new, and then I'll miss my chance with you."

They were both quiet for a moment, until Alcide scooted down the bed, eased Sookie to lay back, and pressed his lips against hers. Alcide kissed her as if he had been doing it for years and years, he seemed to know exactly what she liked, which was a slow, romantic kiss as his rough hands cupped the sides of her face. Sookie reached up and lost her hands in Alcide's soft, thick hair, pulling him even closer. He tasted so good, not like blood, but of manly things that sent shivers down her spine.

When they broke apart, Sookie offered, "Would you like to sleep in my bed with me?" Alcide's eyes lit up and Sookie's cheeks flushed. "Not sleep _with_ me, just sleep next to me."

Sookie loved that Alcide didn't appear to be let down in the slightest, even though she was sure he was. She didn't check his brain for the answer; maybe some things were better off not knowing. "I would like that very much," Alcide said before Sookie took his hand, led him down the stairs and into her room.

"Get in," she told him before she walked into her bathroom to change into her own pajamas. Tonight, Sookie decided to wear pink and purple striped pajama pants with a tight pink tank top. She didn't bother with a bra, they were too uncomfortable to sleep in.

Alcide smiled from under the covers when he saw Sookie emerge from the bathroom. He lifted up the blankets for her to climb inside and pulled her body close to his, warming her up. With her head rested on his chest, Sookie easily fell into a deep sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: **The restaurant that I mentioned in his chapter is actually a real place, so I absolutely cannot take credit for it. Enjoy.

**Chapter Four**

When Sookie woke up, her head was still rested on Alcide's bare chest and his arm was wrapped around her lower waist. Alcide's heartbeat was gentle, steady, and so soothing to her. She never wanted to leave her bed.

Sookie did not notice that Alcide was up until his hand reached down to draw light circles on the small of her back. She shivered at his touch. "Morning," he said in a scruffy voice thick with sleep. "How long have you been up?"

"Only a few minutes," Sookie told him as she ran her hand along Alcide's smooth chest. His chest was mostly bare except for a few soft hairs around his nipples and a light trail of hair from his belly button leading down. "I was just listening to you sleep."

Alcide tensed up a bit beneath Sookie's small frame. "Oh shit, was I snoring loud?"

"No, you were hardly snoring at all," Sookie told him, rubbing one of his strong arms lazily.

"Oh good," Alcide said, relaxing considerably. He brought his hand up to gently twist his fingers in Sookie's blond hair. He leaned down to plant a kiss on her forehead. "Do you have to work?"

Sookie shook her head against Alcide's body. "Nope, I have the day off."

"Got any plans, Stan?" Alcide asked as he tossed Sookie's blankets off his warm body.

"No, I'm free. Do you have anything in mind?" Sookie asked, reluctantly pulling herself from Alcide so she could sit up in her bed. She brought her hands up to her face and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes.

"Well," Alcide started, getting up from the bed himself. "I was thinking about going into Shreveport to pick up some clothes. Still wanna go with me?"

Sookie pulled her hair into a ponytail. "Yeah, of course!" She got up out of her bed and grabbed her bathrobe from the back of her door. When she turned around, she immediately dropped the robe. Alcide was standing in front of her with his pants off and strategically held in place so that one of the pant legs just _barely _covered his manhood. Sookie's eyes darted away from Alcide and she cleared her throat.

"Washing machine?" Alcide asked.

She could _hear _his smirk. "Uh, down the hall from the kitchen."

"Thanks," he said, walking past Sookie towards her door. "I'll be back down in a jiffy."

Sookie nodded weakly. "I'll...um...I'll make some breakfast and a pot of coffee after I'm done in the shower."

When Alcide walked out of Sookie's bedroom, she couldn't help but sneak a peek at his nice, muscular ass. As soon as she was in the bathroom, she looked at herself in the mirror and saw that she was still blushing deeply. "Geez Sook, get it together," she told her reflection before she yanked off her pajamas and jumped in the shower.

As soon as she was done in the shower she quickly dried off her body, did her hair up in a French braid, pulled on t-shirt and some jean shorts, and slapped on a little bit of makeup. When she shuffled out to her kitchen to start making breakfast, she heard the water start to run upstairs.

Sookie started up a pot of coffee as she made scrambled eggs, bacon, and toast. She made more food than she normally would since Alcide was quite a big eater. She removed the bacon from the frying pan to a plate covered by paper towels so that it would soak up the grease, and grabbed the butter and orange marmalade from the refrigerator.

"Smells great," Alcide said approvingly as he walked into the kitchen wearing his usual jeans and plaid button-up. His hair was damp and curling around his face in a way that Sookie thought was adorable. She blushed and turned to focus on spooning out the scrambled eggs into a large serving bowl.

"Hope you're hungry," Sookie told him as she brought the food over to the table. Alcide fished in her cabinets and drawers for two plates, forks, and knives. The way they moved in the kitchen together was so effortless, and Sookie was really starting to believe that a relationship with a guy who was human—well, mostly human—was exactly what she needed.

When they were done with breakfast, Alcide insisted on doing the dishes while Sookie grabbed her purse. "Don't bother getting your keys. I'll drive."

"You don't want me to drive?" Sookie asked, sounding a little bit put out.

Alcide glanced over his shoulder at Sookie and gave her a quick smile. "I don't think I can comfortably fit in your little car."

Sookie couldn't help but laugh. "Okay, your truck it is."

* * *

When they walked into the men's clothing store, Alcide reached to hold Sookie's hand in his. Sookie glanced down at their intertwined fingers, and automatically loved the way their hands looked together. His palm was so warm, and he used his thumb to stroke the smooth skin of the back of her hand.

The store was definitely right up Alcide's alley; there was tons of plaid, blue jeans, and cowboy boots. Sookie followed him around the store as he picked out some clothes to try on. After he had a huge stack of prospective clothes, he led them to the dressing room in the back of the store. He held the door open for Sookie, "After you."

Sookie blushed, but walked inside. She had only been in a dressing room with Tara before when they went to Old Navy during their sales. Sookie sat down on the bench. She watched as Alcide hung up his clothes to try on, and pulled off his shirt and jeans.

Alcide's body was so nice; he had muscles everywhere. His chest was broad and smooth, his arms bulging, his abs were chiseled, and his thighs were firm. Sookie tried to ignore the way her stomach fluttered when she looked at him, and tried telling herself, _Alcide's just trying on clothes, there's nothing sexual about this, get your mind out of the gutter_.

He grabbed a pair of dark blue faded jeans and pulled those on first. They weren't tight around his legs like the new fad, but the way they hung on his frame made it obvious that Alcide was definitely in shape beneath the material. They fit him perfectly, and they hung low enough that his dark trail of hair leading down poked out from the waistband. Sookie couldn't help thinking about doing naughty things with Alcide in those jeans, and when he turned around so she could see how the material hugged his ass, those thoughts only got worse.

"Like 'em?" Alcide asked, looking at himself in the mirror.

Sookie cleared her throat. "I love them. You have to get those jeans." Gosh, she had big plans for the jeans, and she knew that Alcide would be all for it.

Alcide flashed a smile and grabbed a forest green, light brown, and ivory plaid shirt. The colors looked wonderful next to Alcide's tanned skin and dark hair, and it fit him well. Sookie gave him a thumbs-up when he turned to look at her. "You're going to end up buying the whole store; you look good in everything."

"Not polo shirts," Alcide argued playfully, leaning down to kiss Sookie softly as he started to unbutton the green plaid shirt. He stored it, along with the jeans, in his 'yes' pile.

Next was a pair of khaki pants with a plain button-up burgundy shirt. Sookie raised her brows, and Alcide explained, "Just in case I need dressier clothes." He tucked the shirt into his pants. _Like if you take me out on a date,_ Sookie wanted to ask, but decided to keep her mouth shut. He turned and asked, "Yes or no?"

"Yes," Sookie said, smiling. She could do this all day.

Alcide left almost two hundred dollars poorer, but had a couple of wonderful new outfits and a gorgeous pair of chocolate brown cowboy boots that matched his eye color. Like the jeans, Sookie also had big plans for the cowboy boots. They were far too sexy.

"Where do you want to go to dinner?" Alcide asked when he pulled out of the parking lot of the men's store.

Sookie glanced at him. "What do you mean?"

"I wanna take you out somewhere," Alcide explained.

"Oh, you don't have to do that."

Alcide laughed. "I know I don't have to, but I want to."

"But you just spent a ton of money on clothes!" Sookie said.

"Yeah, I know, but I want to take you to dinner," Alcide said, caressing Sookie's soft cheek as she blushed. "What do you feel like?"

Whenever she went out to eat, there was always one thing at the top of the list that she wanted—something she always had difficulty making on her own, so she didn't eat it very often. "Barbecue."

Alcide smiled widely. "You're definitely my kind of girl."

He turned on a couple of busy roads till he located a Podnuh's Bar-B-Que, a restaurant famous in Louisiana for its slow-cooked barbecue. Sookie had only been there a couple of times in the past, and they had the best barbecue sauce and potato salad she'd ever tasted. Her mouth immediately began to water when she breathed in the delicious smell of the meat that hung in the air over the restaurant, and when Alcide found a parking spot, she couldn't get out of his truck fast enough.

"Like this place?" Alcide asked, holding her hand again.

"It's the best barbecue in Louisiana!" Sookie exclaimed, nearly dragging Alcide toward the entrance.

The hostess brought them to a booth. Sookie sat down on one side, expecting Alcide to settle himself across from her, but he slid into the booth next to her. Sookie loved sitting so close to Alcide; his warmth made her feel calm.

Alcide ordered a beer and a Bar-B-Que Sampler plate complete with St. Louis style ribs, brisket, and sausage since he wanted a little bit of everything. Sookie got a sweet iced tea and a beef and pulled pork meat plate with potato salad and coleslaw.

"You better eat all your food, or I'm going to disown you," Alcide told her, squeezing her upper thigh gently before he brought his arm around her shoulders to pull her close.

"You don't need to worry about that, buddy," she told him, patting his chest in a reassuring sort of way.

Alcide lightly kissed Sookie on the cheek, and she couldn't help but giggle when she felt his facial hair tickle her face. He breathed in her sweet scent. "I really like being with you," he admitted.

Sookie rested her head against his chest. "The feeling is mutual."

After about twenty minutes of enjoying time together, their food came. The barbecue was just as good as Sookie remembered it being, and the only thing she needed help finishing off was the coleslaw. Somehow, Alcide ate all his food.

"Where do you put it all?" Sookie asked, poking Alcide's stomach as they walked out to his truck.

"Weres eat a lot," Alcide explained as he opened the door of his truck for Sookie. "Especially the males."

They drove home listening to good classic rock music that they both knew all the lyrics to. Sookie loved driving with the windows rolled down and the music turned up. It reminded her of her teenage years with Tara. They were able to arrive back at Sookie's house sooner than usual since the highway wasn't too crowded as it was nighttime.

When they got back to Sookie's house, Alcide put his truck in park, unbuckled his seatbelt and immediately leaned over to Sookie. He pressed his lips against hers and kissed her deeply, running one of his hands through her soft hair while the other one pulled her close. Sookie moaned into his mouth, completely surprised by the kiss, but loving the way Alcide's lips moved against hers all the same. Sookie reached her hands up to start unbuttoning Alcide's shirt.

"Maybe we should go inside?" Alcide asked when they pulled apart, his breath uneven.

"Good idea," Sookie said, nodding as she readjusted her shirt that Alcide pushed up to expose her flat, tanned stomach.

Alcide nearly ran out of the car to be back at Sookie's side. He lifted her up so he wouldn't have to bend down to kiss her, and thrust his tongue into Sookie's warm mouth. Blindly, and not gracefully at all, Alcide carried Sookie up her stairs, fumbled with her keys to get the door unlocked, and opened it.

Even though he was completely lost in Sookie's kiss, he still heard someone growl from inside the house. Sookie heard it, too, and she broke apart from Alcide to see Bill Compton standing in her hallway with his fangs down right before he flung himself forward to attack Alcide.


End file.
